WACKER to Invest Double-Digit Million-Euro Sum in Biotechnology Center

Munich, Jun 27, 2022

The WACKER Group is concentrating its biotechnology research activities in Munich. The company is investing a double-digit million-euro sum in the construction of a Biotechnology Center, which is scheduled to be operational in 2024. This investment will strengthen WACKER’s biotechnology business.

“The WACKER Biotechnology Center will allow us to concentrate and intensify our research activities in the area of biotechnology. The additional capacity we will create here will accelerate the growth of our life-sciences division,” WACKER CEO Christian Hartel said about the construction project. As part of its strategy for growth, the company is planning to significantly increase investment in the biotechnology sector in the coming years. The product portfolio is to expand through innovation, partnerships and acquisitions. By the year 2030, WACKER BIOSOLUTIONS plans to contribute around €1 billion to Group sales. The construction of the WACKER Biotechnology Center, in which the company is investing a double-digit million-euro amount, will aid this strategy.

The Biotechnology Center will be built in Munich, at the location of the Consortium für elektrochemische Industrie (WACKER’s corporate research facility). WACKER has been conducting fundamental research here for over 100 years and in the field of biotechnology since the 1980s. The growth of biotech business has stretched the capacity available for research activities to its limits. The Biotechnology Center, with space for around 90 employees, is intended to alleviate this. The foundation stone was laid today for the building, whose commissioning is planned for 2024.

consortium_biotechnikum — Fundamental research in biotechnology has been conducted at the WACKER Consortium in Munich since the 1980s. The construction of the Biotechnology Center will expand research capacity in this field. (Photo: WACKER)

The plans include laboratory and pilot plant areas across approximately 2,000 square meters, spread over three floors. The research here will mainly concentrate on the manufacturing process of biopharmaceuticals, especially in the area of advanced medicines, as well as the fermentation-based manufacture of ingredients for foods and food supplements. The efficiency of the research work will be improved through the consolidation of biotechnological R&D under one roof.

There will also be space available in the WACKER Biotechnology Center for staff from the BIOSOLUTIONS division and project groups. Together with customers and development partners, the Biotechnology Center will bridge the gap between R&D and practice. Is there market demand? With which partners can the specified goals be reached? Does the cost-benefit ratio add up? Various criteria will be used to decide which projects are promoted so that ultimately new products and solutions are developed for customers.